Friday, October 30, 2015

- Turn off the device when not in use
- Turn Wi-Fi on only when needed
- Always place the mobile device on a solid surface
- Viewing distance should be a minimum of 12 inches from the screen
- Specific product information guides are available through the IT department
- We ask that staff members regularly remind and instruct students in using best practices in regards to mobile devices

9 comments:

WOW. At least MCPS could do take these very simple steps. What harm can it do to implement this statewide? The potential harm from NOT doing it is huge.. cancer.. immune damage.. cmon MCPS ...DO THE RIGHT THING HERE!

From where do these "Best Practices" originate? What "device" is being turned off? If it's a cell phone or laptop turning them off doesn't reduce the "radiation" (radiation, mind you, that has less energy than visible light and couldn't raise the temperature of a class of water sitting under it, but we're supposed to be afraid of it for ourselves and our children - the ignorance tied to this issue is stunning) from the wifi transmitter that sends out the "radiation" that everyone is concerned about. How does putting to device down flat on a table change anything - again, the signal from the wifi transmitter is still flying through the air, you still have to touch the thing to work it, and I guess it's not being held in your hands while you use it - wow, let's see, given how many people actually hold these things there must be all kinds of abnormal cancers of the skin or tissues of the hand spiking throughout the world ... actually, no, not happening.

There is no evidence to support that there's harm tied to wifi, none. On the basis of there being no evidence everyone wants to assume that there must be something harmful, here to in spite of the fact that there's no evidence of medical conditions increasing that can in any way be tied to wifi.

Let's hold meetings where we all show our ignorant concern, and put in place "standards" that, for sure, most won't even pay attention to, instead of funding research that will conclusively show that this is not an issue.

You and your children absorb far more radiation, legitimate honest-to-God DNA altering radiation, from flying in a plane at high altitude than you do from your wifi devices in a year's time. I don't read of anyone being up in arms over making sure lead suits are available for flying, or that airlines be forced to fly at lower altitudes to reduce radiation.

Research shows cancers are increasing. Educate yourself please..Using U.S. national tumor registry data, a recent study found that the overall incidence of meningioma, the most common non-malignant brain tumor, has significantly increased in the United States in recent years (Dolecek et al., 2015). The incidence of glioma, the most common malignant brain tumor, has also been increasing in recent years in the United States, although not across-the-board. The National Cancer Institute reported that glioma incidence in the frontal lobe increased among young adults 20-29 years of age (Inskip et al., 2010). The incidence of glioblastoma multiforme, a highly cancerous glioma, increased in the frontal and temporal lobes, and in the cerebellum among adults of all ages in the U.S. (Zada et al., 2012). Hardell and Carlberg (2015) recently reported that brain tumor rates have been increasing in Sweden based upon the Swedish National Inpatient Registry data.

In addition, the likelihood of developing a non-malignant brain tumor has increased in recent years in the U.S. according to newly-released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The age-adjusted incidence of the most common non-malignant tumor, meningioma, significantly increased among adults from 2004 through 2012. Several studies have found an increased risk for meningioma among heavy cell phone users: Carlberg and Hardell (2015) , Coureau et al. (2014) and Cardis et al. (2011)

The age-adjusted incidence of pituitary gland tumors has significantly increased among children and a prospective study of 790,000 women in the United Kingdom reported that the risk pituitary gland tumors was more than twice as high among women who used a cell phone for less than five years as compared to never users (Benson et al., 2013).

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Principles

Formed in 2002, the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland seeks to achieve the goals of coherent, content-rich curriculum standards; high expectations combined with timely remediation and acceleration; a wider range of educational options for parents and children; greater transparency and accountability; and meaningful community input.

E-mail: parentscoalitionmc AT outlook.com

What the Gazette said about the Parents' Coalition

It has taken a watchdog outside group, the Parents’ Coalition of Montgomery County, to ferret out this waste. The coalition, driven by its sharp curiosity, frequently uses the Maryland Public Information Act to request public records and keep track of district decisions and spending.

We commend the coalition for its important work on this front. It is saving county residents money as inappropriate spending has been uncovered.

What The Washington Post said about the Parents' Coalition

The coalition might be the best-known parent advocacy group in the region. Its members represent several constituencies, including parents of special education and gifted education students and fiscal watchdogs. The group's defining victory came this school year when the school system scaled back the fees charged to families for course materials.

Coalition leaders have drawn attention to the misuse of funds collected from students for activities, the broadcast of a commercial radio service on school buses and, with their "Weast Watch" blog, the travel habits of Weast and his lieutenants.

MD Open Meetings Act Compliance Board staff says

Jerry Weast on the Parents' Coalition

"Along the way, you’ve had a challenging relationship with the Parents’ Coalition, the network of citizen activists who use the political process and other means to hold MCPS accountable.

The thing people accuse me of is listening, but not hearing. I hear, but I do not always agree. I am sorry that the world is faster than it was 10 years ago. I did not do that. [But] if we do not keep up, then our kids will be behind. We have to stop whining and get real."